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Jason Aldean will collaborate withKelsea Ballerini on his upcoming project, which is slated for release on Sept. 9.

His seventh studio album for Broken Bow Records, titled They Don’t Know, was produced by Aldean’s longtime producer Michael Knox and includes the same band he has worked with for a decade, both on and off stage.

The project also includes “First Time Again,” featuring Ballerini. The lead single is “Lights Come On.”

“I really wanted to start this new album with one of those big up-tempos,” said Aldean. “So, for it to click right away with fans and radio is a really cool way to start. With all the records we’ve done, we’ve been able to explore new sounds and really just do things our own way, and that’s sort of what the title track is all about.”

They Don’t Know Track List:

1. “Lights Come On”
2. “A Little More Summertime”
3. “This Plane Don’t Go There”
4. “Comin’ in Hot”
5. “First Time Again” (with Kelsea Ballerini)
6. “Bad”
7. “They Don’t Know”
8. “One We Won’t Forget”
9. “Whiskey’d Up”
10. “In Case You Don’t Remember”
11. “All Out of Beer”
12. “Any Ol’ Barstool”
13. “The Way a Night Should Feel”
14. “Reason to Love L.A.”
15. “When the Lights Go Out”

The Time Jumperswill honor late band member Dawn Sears with their new project, Kid Sister. Influenced by Western swing and traditional country music, the project is set for release on Rounder Records on Sept. 9.

Sears passed away in 2014 after a battle with lung cancer.

Comprising first-call studio playersand touring musicians,The Time Jumpers found a solid fan following when they took up residence on Monday evenings (their usual day off the road) at Nashville club 3rd & Lindsley. Band members includeVince Gill, vocals and guitars; Kenny Sears (Dawn Sears’ husband), fiddle and vocals; Joe Spivey and Larry Franklin, fiddles and vocals; Paul Franklin, steel guitar; “Ranger Doug” Green, guitars and vocals; Billy Thomas, drums and vocals; Jeff Taylor, accordion, piano and vocals; Andy Reiss, guitars; and Brad Albin, bass.

Theensemble’sprior release, 2012’s self-titled album, received two Grammy nominations.

Gill produced Kid Sister with the entire band creating the arrangements.

Kid Sister track listing:
1. “My San Antonio Rose” (Freddy Powers)
2. “I Miss You” (Vince Gill, Ashley Monroe)
3. “We’re The Time Jumpers” (Vince Gill)
4. “Table For Two” (Vince Gill, Max D. Barnes)
5. “Empty Rooms” (Doug Green)
6. “All Aboard” (Paul Franklin)
7. “Blue Highway Blue” (John Paul Daniel, Debi Smith Cochran, Billy Thomas)
8. “I Hear You Talkin’” (Cindy Walker)
9. “The True Love Meant For Me” (Vince Gill)
10. “Honky Tonkin’” (Vince Gill, Troy Seals)
11. “Bloodshot Eyes” (Hank Penny)
12. “Sweet Rowena” (Vince Gill, Pete Wasner)
13. “This Heartache” (Kenny Sears)
14. “Kid Sister” (Vince Gill)

Big Loud Records artist Chris Lane has released the track list forhis debut album, Girl Problems, to be released on Aug.5.The set features his current single,“Fix,” and features the writing of several acesongwriters.

Songs by Cary Barlowe, Barry Dean, Sarah Buxton, Rodney Clawson, Matt Dragstrem, Kevin Fisher, Jesse Frasure, Luke Laird, Shane McAnally, Abe Stoklasa, Josh Thompson, and more are featured on the project. Lane also has a writing credit on the track “All About You,” alongside Jordan Schmidt and Andy Albert. The title track was written byChris DeStefano, Ashley Gorley and Josh Kear.

The Joey Moi-produced project is available for pre-order today. Those who pre-order will receive five tracks, including “Fix,” “For Her,” “Let Me Love You,” “Her Own Kind Of Beautiful,” and “Saturday Night.”

Girl Problems Track List:

1. “Fix” (Sarah Buxton, Jesse Frasure, Abe Stoklasa)
2. “For Her” (Matt Dragstrem, Kelly Archer, Sarah Buxton)
3. “Let Me Love You” (Kameron Houff, Shaffer Smith, Scott Storch)
4. “Who’s It Gonna Be” (Nick Bailey, Kevin Fisher, James “JHart” Abrahart, Ryan Ogren)
5. “Back To Me” (Cary Barlowe, Josh Thompson, Rob Persaud)
6. “Maybe” (Jacob Hawkes, David Pramik, Charlie Snyder, Eben Wares)
7. “Her Own Kind Of Beautiful” (Rodney Clawson, Barry Dean, Matt Dragstrem)
8. “All The Time” (James “JHart” Abrahart, Jordan Evans, Chelcee Grimes, Tayla Parkx, Tinashe Sibanda)
9. “Circles” featuring Mackenzie Porter (Steph Jones, Joey Moi, Danny Parker, Sno, Emily Warren)
10. “Saturday Night” (Ashley Gorley, Luke Laird, Shane McAnally)
11. “All About You” (Andy Albert, Chris Lane, Jordan Schmidt)
12. “Girl Problems” (Chris DeStefano, Ashley Gorley, Josh Kear)

Visitor spending for the 2016 CMA Music Festival declined, but only slightly. This year brought in $59.5 million in direct visitor spending, versus$60.4 million in 2015. This year’s festival saw daily attendance of 88,500 fans.

A study from the Nashville Visitors & Convention Corp indicates that 84.6 percent of those fans were from out of town in 2016, with 83 percent in 2015. The number of international visitors for this year’s CMA Music Festival increased this year, with 12.6 percent, compared tolast year’s 10.3 percent.

Research showed that stays in home rentals, like Airbnb and VRBO, rose to9.2 percent from 4.9 percent in 2015. Some 74.6 percent of attendees said they stayed in a hotel, down from 80.6 percent in 2015.

“This event still reigns supreme as the ultimate success story and our largest annual event, bringing national television exposure to Nashville and global recognition to our Music City brand,” said Butch Spyridon, President and CEO of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp. “We can’t thank the CMA and all the participating artists enough for what they do for the city in terms of the economic activity generated and the millions of dollars raised for music education.”

He added,“Even though we saw more people gravitate to more affordable home rental accommodations, which would account for the relatively flat growth in visitor spending, this was another hugely successful event that should be celebrated.”

“The city of Nashville contributes so much to the success of CMA Music Festival,” said Sarah Trahern, CMA Chief Executive Officer. “So, it is extremely rewarding that this event is benefiting the community where we live and work through the support of music education programs and direct visitor spending.”

Three music industry organizations, including the Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP), the American Association of Independent Music (A2IM), and the Canadian Music Publishers Association (CMPA) have released a joint statement regarding the recent rulingof the Department of Justice regarding 100 percent licensing.

The decision on 100 percent licensing means that a song co-written by an ASCAP songwriter and a BMI songwriter could belicensed with approval from just one PRO. It also means that if a songwriter owns onlya portion of the song, he or she can license it, as long as that songwriter ensures the other credited writers are getting paid. Under the current system, known as fractionalized licensing, each copyright owner in the song takes care of licensing their portion.

Meanwhile the ruling declined requests from major publishing companies to have a right to negotiate licensing rates with digital music providers like Pandora and Spotify. The original consent decree, which requires ASCAP and BMI to license songs at afixedrate, was enacted in 1941. The music industry has lobbied for the last two or three years to modernize the law to reflect how music is now consumed. Their requests were all denied in the ruling.

Technically, both PROs must consent to the changes. The next step is approval from federal rate court judges.

The full statement from AIMP, A2IM, and CMPA is available below:

We, the undersigned, represent the independent music publishing and record label community in North America, and want to lend our unified voice to the recent press and discussion regarding the outrageous position the Department of Justice (DoJ) has taken with regard to the ASCAP and BMI consent decrees.

The heart of the music business is the song. No recording artist would exist without a song, and songs would not exist without songwriters. The songwriters are the smallest of small businesses, and many of them control the ownership to their songs. A significant number of songwriters have entered into mutually beneficial agreements with music publishers who develop and promote their songs. The independent music publishing and record company sector is over one-third of the music industry in North America and employs thousands. While each company may vary in size and have relationships with major labels and/or music publishers, they all share the same independent DNA. The vibrant, diverse and dynamic music business we know today was built by songwriters, independent music publishers, and independent record labels… but that’s all about to change.

After spending a great deal of U.S. taxpayer money the last few years reviewing the 75-year-old consent decrees, holding public testimony on the various ways in which the anachronistic consent decrees should be updated to address the challenges of a digital economy, and apparently ignoring hundreds of public comments officially submitted to them, the DoJ determined both that the consent decrees should not be amended and that ASCAP and BMI should be forced to issue 100% licenses.

This position by the DoJ on 100% licensing is 100% wrong. The DoJ’s position will obstruct every level of the music business as songwriters’ creative processes will be impacted by which PRO their co-writers are signed with. In a world where songwriters, artists, music publishers and record companies are already being paid below market rates by tech companies that built their businesses by using our songs, the DoJ has opened the door for even lower payments. The DoJ’s decision reaches far beyond our shores and threatens our relationships with foreign writers, publishers and record companies. The DoJ has now unwittingly entered the creative process in the writing room and the recording studio. They do not belong there.

Independent songwriters, music publishers and recording artists deserve more than what we have received here. The DoJ and its largest supporter in its recent ruling, Public Knowledge, has propped up the media conglomerates at the expense of the entire music industry. We deserve fair market rates that are not regulated by the U.S. government and the ability to decide when and where our property is used. The DoJ cannot be permitted to decide that for us.

AIMP (Association of Independent Music Publishers), A2IM (American Association of Independent Music) and CMPA (Canadian Music Publishers Association) stand shoulder to shoulder in opposing this unfortunate DoJ decision on 100% licensing. The vast majority of music publishers, songwriters, labels, and recording artists are small- and medium-sized enterprises, and it is essential for them to be able to control the use of their copyrights in order to sustain their businesses and careers.

If we value music, we need to value those who create it.

Michael Eames, President, AIMP

Richard James Burgess, Ph.D., CEO, A2IM

Jodie Ferneyhough, President, CMPA

Cumulus Media has launched its NASH Next 2016 contest, seeking undiscovered country artists. The winner will land a record deal with Big Machine Label Group and have the opportunity for significant radio airplay through Cumulus.

NASH/Cumulus stations in 60 markets, including Dallas, New York, Atlanta, Detroit and Nashville, will conduct local searches, with additional national participation made possible by Cumulus’ digital properties and syndicated country shows.

Big Machine Label Group’s Scott Borchetta,Kix Brooks, and Jay DeMarcus will serve as the competition’s final judges.

Reba McEntire helped announce the contest and noted, “Radio has been an essential — and joyous — part of my musical career for over four decades. Cumulus is synonymous with country, so it’s the pitch perfect vehicle for this search. I’m honored to add my voice to this great project that will help usher in the next generation of country stars.”

Mary G. Berner, president and CEO, Cumulus Media Inc., stated, “NASH Next 2016 is an ideal way to leverage Cumulus’ leadership position in country music. By launching this competition with record-breaking support from our stations and affiliates, we are further signaling to listeners, advertisers and business partners that Cumulus is #1 for country.”

She added, “With the continued explosion of country’s popularity, and with our programming now broadcast on 82 percent of all country radio stations nationwide, Cumulus has even more opportunities for growth, providing expanded exclusive content for fans, and an even bigger audience for America’s newest country star.”

Music consumption isgrowing, according to the2016 Nielsen Mid-Year U.S. Music Report for the period of Jan.1 throughJune30. Total consumption for the year, based on Albums plus Track Equivalent Albums (TEA) and Streaming Equivalent Albums (SEA), isup nine percent from last year.

The country genre accounted for 11.6 percent of total album sales, 13.1 percent of physical album sales, and 9.6 percent of digital albums sales. Chris Stapleton‘s Traveller album is one of 2016’s overall Top 10-selling projects (see charts below).

“In the past year we have seen a continued shift in the music industry from a buying model to a streamingmodel,” says David Bakula, SVP Industry Insights, Nielsen. “Streaming now makes up nearly 50% of the overallvolume, while we continue to see declines in digital purchasing.”

For the first half of 2016, more than 209 billion songs were streamed on-demand, via audio and video platforms, representing a 59 percent increase over last year.Audio on-demand streams now make up 54 percent of total streams, while video is now 46 percent of the total. Audio hasgrown 97 percent over the first half of 2015, while Video has grown by 29 percent.This growth contributed to overall digital consumption (sales and streams) increasing 15 percent.

However, digital tracks sales were weak, down 24 percent compared to the first half of 2015.Overall album sales are down 14 percent, including an 18 percent decline in digital album sales.Physical album sales are down 10 percent, despite continued strength in sales of vinyl LPs, which areup 12 percent to 6.2 million units.

Rock music brought in the large share of sales volume taking 26.8 percent for total album+TEA+SEA, followed by R&B/hip-hop (22.6 percent), pop (14.5), country (8.4), Latin (5.0), electronic/dance (3.8), Christian/Gospel (3.0) and the classical and jazz categories (1.2 percent each).

Chris Stapletonandspecial guest Lee Ann Womackwill playAscend Amphitheater in downtown Nashville on Friday, Oct. 14.

The Ascend performance is Stapleton’s first headlining show in Nashville since his three sold-out performances at the Ryman Auditorium in February. Stapleton joined Guns N’ Roses as their special guest this past Saturday at Nissan Stadium.

Stapleton’s Traveller album has been a mainstay in the Top 5 country albums rankings since his remarkable CMA Music Awards performance with Justin Timberlake in November 2015. The project has now been certified platinum by the RIAA for sales of more than 1 million units.

Womack, known for country hits such as “I Hope You Dance” and “Little Past Little Rock,” released the project The Way I’m Livin’on Sugar Hill Records in September 2014.

Tickets for the Ascend show will go on sale Friday, July 15at 10 a.m. CT.

Garth Brooks took over Yankee stadium in New York Cityfor a second consecutive night onSaturday, July 9, but this time Mother Nature also purchased a front row seat.

Due to pounding rain and sporadic lightening, the concert was delayed for three hours. Fans were evacuated from the field and ordered to take shelter after workers had to pull out protective tarps for the stage and equipment.

But everyone knows Garth isn’t going to leave without a show. When the rain and lightning let up and fans were allowed back in their seats, Garth, as only Garth can, took what Mother Nature dealt and created a new fantastic show on the fly.

As the drizzling rain continued and water pooled on stage, Garth appeared a few minutes before midnight and told the audience he wasn’t going to be able to give the same show he did the preceding night. Due to the weather, he admitted this would be a completely different show adding, “And we will play anything you want!” The bad weather gave the audience an unprecedented opportunity to give requests in a stadium show and severalof those requested songs were not part of the tour’s original set list.

Even Trisha Yearwood admitted, “We are off the grid!,” after joining Garth midway into the concert. However, the production and performances were so engaging with the enthusiastic crowd, other than the references to the weather’s disruption, it was easy to forget this wasn’t all part of the original plan.

The rain delay caused many fans to head home before it began, in order to make their trains back home. However, the majority remained and for them, Garth rose to the occasion, making the night one theywill never forget.

The two New York City shows over the weekend in Yankee Stadium marks the first time Garth has played in New York City in nearly 20 years.

Little Extra Music singer/songwriter Kelsey Waters has signed with William Morris Endeavor Entertainment (WME) for representation.

Raised in the 30-A region of the Florida panhandle, Waterswas playing bars before she could even drive. After signing her publishing deal with Little Extra Music, she began collaboratingwith writers includingLori McKenna (“Girl Crush,” “Humble & kind”) and Tia Sillers (“I Hope You Dance,” “There’s Your Trouble,” “Blue On Black”). Waters is working on her first album.

“I want my music to be relevant, honest and come straight from the heart,” Waters says. “My hope is to make a record full of songs that sound just as true as they do when they’re first recorded as a work-tape on my phone. That raw, crazy energy, when you know you’ve written something fine, when you think you’ve nailed it? That’s what I’m out to capture.”